A Home For A Wolf
by AlunaSnow
Summary: This is a story that followers my character, Luka Snow, as she goes through Hogwarts. I may or may not stick to the books at times and I will most likely skip over parts of or whole books in the series. But I am hoping this will be good. This story is going to have some action, a lot of drama, and some romance. This story will focus mainly on Luka, Fred, and George. So enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

~Chapter 1~

It was hard to escape the blaring heat of that summer day in the middle of June, but it was even harder for a poor orphaned girl to escape. People all over stayed inside their nicely air conditioned homes or sat near fans blowing semi-cooled air into their faces. However, a young girl of 11 was running down side alleys trying to get back to her makeshift home in the abandoned building. The building was on the other side of the town and it was a long run in that heat.

She was barefoot and trying to avoid the road that had been made burning hot in the summer sun. Her clothes were basically rags that she had been able to sew into amazing garments. Her short dark brown hair was messily cut and tossed about almost as a clear sign that she was homeless, but her quick, bright blue eyes shown with life and youth. She rounded another corner and took off straight for the building running as fast as she could over the burning pavement.

The building was old and had been vacant for the past 50 years. However, it was the perfect place for a lonely little girl. The shutters on the windows were broken and hanging or missing completely. The roof of the building was old and had never been redone and so it had many holes and would cause the house to be filled with water when it rained. However, the little girl didn't seem to mind the dilapidated appearance of the old house. She had lived in it for the past 6 years since the death of her parents.

She ducked under the half of the door that still remained and collapsed on the cold wooden floor. She breathed heavily as she tried to cool her burning feet on the floor. Slowly she let her body collapse under the heavy heat that made it hard to breathe and drifted off to sleep.

She slept for a while in the crushing heat, but slowly as the sun began to lower and a coolness entered the breeze. But even as she began to grow cold she continued to sleep, until the sound of fluttering wings woke her. She opened her eyes and stared up at one of the many holes in the roof. There coming down to her was a large brown owl with something tied to its leg. It swooped and dove and landed softly right beside her. She sat up slowly and stared into the owls large orange eyes. It cooed at her and twisted its head to the side as it stuck out its leg. She reached over and untied the letter that was there.

Once it was released from its burden it spread its wings once more and flew back out through the hole it had come in through. She watched it fly away and then simply stared at the hole for a while before returning to the letter in her hands. It was in a thick envelope and scrolled across its front in glimmering green ink was the following, "Ms. Luka Rita Snow, at The Abandoned Cottage." She stared at it trying to figure out who would be sending her letters with such an accurate address.

She opened the envelope and pulled out a letter written in the same kind of ink. She read it through, and then had to read it again at least three times just to take in what it was saying. If she understood it correctly, she had been accepted to a school for witchcraft and wizardry and she somehow needed to get all of the things on this list and also needed to end up somewhere called King's Cross Station. Suddenly she felt rather overwhelmed and so laid back down on the cool floor with the letter clutched in her hands against her chest. She closed her eyes and let out a long steady breath.


	2. Chapter 2

~Chapter 2

The smell of cooking eggs wafted past the young girl's nose. It was a foreign smell. She hadn't had a cooked meal since her parents' death. She sat up and opened her eyes, but what she saw was not at all what she was expecting. She was in a small blue room with one window which was beside her. There was a bed stand and a dresser, both painted white as was the door. She got out of the bed and went for the door, but she froze before she reached it and turned back to look at the bed. It had a white, fluffy comforter and at least six pillows.

Luka couldn't figure out where she was or if she was even conscience. She closed her eyes and pinched her arm, but when she opened her eyes she was still in that beautiful place with the smell of food wafting through the door. She took a deep breath, grabbed the handle, and wrenched the door open. She stepped through it as she exhaled and was met by a tall man in a sky blue robe. He had a long silver gray beard that matched his hair.

He turned and looked down at her with his blue eyes that seemed to be looking through her. "Well good morning." He said. His voice was thick but gentle and something about it seemed almost fatherly. However, Luka had learned that people may act one way and be something different and she wasn't about to trust this strange man who seemed to have kidnapped her. She simply stood in the door way and locked her bright blue eyes upon him and closely watched every move he made. He simply smiled and went back to the eggs and bacon he was cooking on the stove.

"My name is Albus Dumbledor by the way. What's yours?" he asked as he moved the food onto plates and began to move them to the table. Luka didn't answer and she wasn't moving from that doorway. Dumbledore sighed, "You're a rather untrusting person. Which is understandable considering what you have been through, but still, do I look like I would harm you?" Luka was startled. How could this man know what she had been through?

"Come. Eat before it gets cold." He said. He was trying every trick he knew to get her to open up and talk or at least eat something. He hadn't seen a child that skinny in years. He knew life was rough, but he hadn't realized how rough it had been for her. He had assumed that over time the village would pull together and help her, but they hadn't and he felt like a fool. Luka's hunger, however, had gotten the best of her and so she slowly walked over and took a seat at the table, which brought a smile to Dumbledore's face.

They ate in silence and Luka never once took her eyes off of him, but Dumbledore never moved from her sight. He would give her no reason to panic, and so he simply sat in the chair and waited. "You haven't told me your name yet." He said as the girl ate the last of the food on her plate. He knew what her name was, in fact he knew everything about her, but still getting her name would be a start to getting her to trust him. However, Luka had other plans.

"I know I haven't, and I don't plan on telling you my name." she began, her blue eyes seemed almost deadly as they glared at him, "You seem to know more of me then I know of you, and that simply won't do. Now explain yourself." She demanded. Her voice was steady and firm and it startled him. He hadn't expected her to react in such a fashion, after all she was an 11 year old orphaned girl, and he had expected her to be accepting and polite. However her glowing blue eyes said otherwise and it suddenly dawned on him that he was in a very dangerous situation.

Dumbledore took a deep breath and began, "My name is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore and I am the head master of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I knew your parents a long time ago." He stated and not once did her face change. It was as though she were made of stone and he was unable to break through. "I have come to collect you and bring to Hogwarts. It is a safe and secret place where people like us can study magic and make friends. However, it is completely up to you whether or not you want to come." Luka continued to stare for a while a very stern and angry look upon her face, but slowly it began to melt away into a look of pain and even fear.

"You wouldn't want me there." She said and began to rise from the table.

"But I do. I believe Hogwarts could become a home for you and you could find within its walls friends and maybe even a family." Dumbledore responded rising with her.

"Monsters do not have homes or friends or families."

"Luka, you are no monster. Please just consider it. If you change your mind meet me at the town hall tomorrow at midnight."

Luka made to turn around and tell him no, but he was already gone. He was nowhere to be found in that room or any of the others. She stood alone in that glistening white kitchen, her head full of information and emotions that she couldn't figure out how to process through and all she could do was stand there. What was she to do? Did she go and meet the strange man or claimed to know her parents and take a chance at meeting people, or did she stay away and keep those people safe from the monster inside of her?

She let out a deep sigh and walked into a bathroom that she had found when looking for Dumbledore and washed her face. As she patted her face dry she looked into the mirror. She looked normal with her scruffy hair and blue eyes, but it began to change as she let out a deep sigh as if putting down a heavy load. Slowly her hair began to turn white and her eyes became a brilliant gold color, as a pair of large wolf ears grew out of where her normal ears had been.


	3. Chapter 3

~Chapter 3~

The night air whipped through the village blowing up the dried loose dirt that covered the roads from the dry heat of the summer day. Luka had spent the day alone in that bright white house that was cool and filled with all sorts of food, some of which she had never seen before. However, as wondrous as these things were she couldn't bring herself to enjoy them after everything that had happened yesterday. Her head was still spinning with all that bizarre information, and yet she found herself sitting on the town hall steps at a quarter to midnight.

She carried with her a small brown bag with what little she processed carefully packed inside. It contained the few clothes she had been able to make for herself that were still in "good" condition, the last picture she had of her family, and the sewing kit that her mother had given her before her death. They were small things, but to Luka they were the greatest of worldly processions, and she refused to be parted from them.

The wind swept through once more and whipped through her hair making it look even messier then it usually did. *BANG* Luka jumped to her feet and ran up the stairs to hide behind one of the pillars on the porch of the town hall. The sound had come from somewhere up the street were the lights were broken. Luka tried to look through the darkness to see what could have made such a noise in that harsh darkness, but her eyes couldn't make out a single thing. She took a deep breath and as she exhaled her eyes turned to their brilliant golden color and it was as though the darkness had become light.

She could see the outlines of the garbage cans left out for the truck to come and pick up that morning and the streetlamps. Somewhere, a little farther down she could make out the slight outline of a man. She narrowed her eyes and focused on the shape until it became large enough to be distinguished as the man she had met yesterday, and then she stepped out from behind the pillar and stepped into the road. She stood still, the bag around her shoulders, and she waited for him to get closer.

Finally, he stood before her and he smiled. "Part of me thought you weren't going to show up." He said softly. Luka looked up into his chill blue eyes and wondered how a man who knew her secret, who knew the monster that lay beneath the surface, could possibly think that putting her with other people would be a good idea. However, he believed in her and she could see that in his eyes, and somewhere inside she wanted to believe too. She wanted to believe that she could be more than a monster.

"I considered not coming, but why not give it a shot. There is nothing for e here anyway." She said as firmly as she could. Dumbledore smiled and stretched out his hand. "Hold on tight." He said and waited for her to take it. She stared at his hand for a few moments before slowly taking it and gripping tight. Once more there was a loud bang, but this time she felt her whole body begin to stretch out and she felt as though he was being pulled and twisted. With each twist and pull she clung tighter to Dumbledore's arm.

The twisting and pulling felt like it lasted for an eternity, but in fact it was over in a minute and when her feet finally hit ground she was standing on a cobbled street. She had no idea where she was on that dark street, but she could make out the tall shabby looking buildings. "Welcome to Diagon Alley, Luka." Dumbledore said as he gestured to the dark area around them. "I thought we were going to Hogwarts." She said stiffly, she didn't want him to know that she was actually in great wonder at what they had just done. "Well, we have to get your stuff first, and then we can head there. Follow me." He replied and began walking down the street. Luka held tight to his hand and followed after him.

He led her down the street to a shabby building with one swinging light hanging above the faded door. The sign next to the door read "The Leaky Cauldron" in faded, gold lettering. "What is this place?" Luka asked, as Dumbledore walked up the steps and knocked on the door. "It's an inn." He replied matter of factly. They waited only a few minutes before the door was swung open by a hunched man. "Ah Dumbledore, I have been waiting for you. The rooms are already." The man said in a gruff yet high voice. Dumbledore thanked him.

He and Luka followed after the man down a narrow hallway that was lit with oil lamps and smelled of peas. They walked down hallways and upstairs until they reached the fourth floor. The man led them to the last two doors on the floor and handed Dumbledore the keys. The man said good night and then began making his way back down. Dumbledore turned to Luka and handed her one of the keys. It had a tag that read 415 on it. She looked around her and found the door with the matching number. She turned back to Dumbledore who smiled and placed his key into the opposite door and went inside. Luka followed suit and entered the small dark room.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

It seemed to Luka that as quick as she had come to Diagon Alley she was leaving it. Dumbledore had taken her to all the different shops to gather the supplies on her letter and helped her get them back to the Leaky Cauldron. However, today was her last day in Diagon Alley before Dumbledore whisked her off to some other magical place that she had never known about previously. They had everything on the list except for two things: a wand and a pet.

However, earlier that day they had attempted to purchase an owl, but the animals in the menagerie did not take to kindle to Luka. She had tried to tell Dumbledore that they wouldn't as animals were able to sense the werewolf blood that plagued her. After the fourth time an owl tried to attack her, Dumbledore got the hint and they left. They headed instead down the winding streets towards an old shop that looked almost abandoned.

The windows of the shop were dirty and hard to see through and when Dumbledore opened the shop door it creaked and groaned on its ancient hinges that were in desperate need of repair. They stepped into the little shop and Luka found it to look just as abandoned as the outside did. The floors were scratched and dirty and just about every surface was covered in a thick layer of gray dust. All about the room were shelves filled with long narrow boxes which spilled over onto the floor or any other surface was available.

Dumbledore didn't seem to find the mess or obvious filth that surrounded them. He calmly walked to the desk and rang a bell that was behind a pile of boxes. From somewhere off in the back of the shop they heard a crash and then a sound like metal sliding on metal. Suddenly, from around one of the shelves came a man on what appeared to be a ladder usually found in libraries. He was small man with gray hair that stuck out in all directions and his clothes were dirty and unkempt.

"Ah! Dumbledore! How are you good fellow?" the man called as he bounded off the ladder with a youth that did not match the wrinkles in his face. Dumbledore laughed as he shook the man's hand. "I am good Olivander! And yourself?" and with that the two men began to chat and exchange stories about events that had elapsed between their last seeing each other which appeared to be a very long time ago. Luka just stood patiently beside Dumbledore and waited for them to notice that she was still there.

It didn't take them long and soon Luka heard her name come up in the conversation. "Ah, and this would be she would it?" Olivander ask as he turned his large gray eyes onto Luka. "Yes, and we are here in search of a wand. I assume you can help with that?" Dumbledore said with a smile as he gestured to the room. Olivander laughed and jumped back onto the ladder and went off again. "Just give him a moment." Dumbledore whispered as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

Soon Olivander returned with a pile of four to six boxes in his arms. "Let's start with these, shall we?" he said and opened the first box and removed from it a long skinny stick that Luka assumed was a wand. He handed the wand to Luka who held it not really sure what she was supposed to do. Olivander frowned at her and for a moment she was worried that she was doing something wrong, but then he smiled. "Well we'll just keep trying." And with that he took the wand back and replaced it in its box.

Olivander just kept handing her wand after wand and each time was the same result. Nothing. However, he just kept trying with undaunted enthusiasm even though Luka was starting to get rather annoyed at this whole process. All the while Dumbledore sat beneath the dirty windows reading a newspaper that had moving pictures on it. Luka wanted to tell them that they should just leave, but Olivander took her off guard as he came around behind her. In his hands he held a a narrow blue box that was covered in dust.

Luka heard Dumbledore close his newspaper and his quick footsteps over to them. "What is that?" he asked in a worried and slightly angry tone. Qlivander refused to meet Dumbledore's penetrating glare and instead stared directly at Luka who was trying to decide what to do in that situation. Olivander opened the box and pulled out the wand. It was a little worn in places but you could still clearly see the blue designs etched into its dark wood. He handed it to Luka who took it with a little apprehension.

The second the cool wood touched her fingers she felt a rush of force run through her and suddenly her hand felt very hot. She almost let go of the wand, but as quick as her hand had heated it cooled. She looked up at Olivander who had a slight Smile on his old face and then glanced at Dumbledore who still looked rather angry about the whole thing, although, she couldn't understand why.

"That wand was supposed to be destroyed." Dumbledore said with anger in his voice. Olivander looked up at him. "I do not destroy wands. I told you that when you gave it to me." The old man responded firmly. The two stared at each other for a while until Luka broke the stand still. "What's wrong with the wand that it would need to be destroyed?" she asked as she looked over the delicate piece of wood in her hand. Olivander looked down at her and was about to respond when Dumbledore cut him off.

"When a wand's owner dies the wand is usually destroyed," he said with emphasis on the word usually as he glared at Olivander. "So who owned this wand before?" she asked looking up at Dumbledore. He looked done into her blues eyes and just remained silent. They both did. "Well it obviously belonged to someone and someone important judging by your reactions." She said as she ran her fingers over the designs. Dumbledore let out a long steady breath and turned away, but Olivander knelt down to her eyelevel.

"This wand is very special," he said as he took it and began put it in the box, "The woman who owned it before you was a very kind and beautiful girl. She was very courageous and stood up for people who very often couldn't stand up for themselves. That's how she died. Protecting someone she cared a lot about." He handed her the blue box and rose to his full height again. "Who was she?" Luka asked. She liked the sound of this woman. Olivander smiled softly, "Well her name was Sophia. That wand belonged to your mother."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

After they left Olivander's, Dumbledore became very quiet and sullen. Luka didn't understand what was so wrong about Mr. Olivander giving her her mother's wand, but she didn't want to ask either especially after the way Dumbledore had responded to Olivander earlier. They walked back to the Leaky Cauldron in silence together, but when they reached the door Dumbledore disappeared leaving Luka to walk through the pub and to her room by herself.

She got to the room and immediately jumped onto the bed and began examining her new wand. The dark almost black wood was cool to the touch no matter how long she held it and all along it was carver intricate Celtic knots that glowed blue. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen and for the first time since she had met Dumbledore she was actually excited about going to Hogwarts and learning how to use the wand that she now owned.

As she examined the wand and thought about all the amazing things she was going to learn to do with it, Dumbledore was off in a dark narrow street somewhere in a dreary England town. He was making his way down the street trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, luckily for him though he didn't see anyone on his journey through Spinner's End.

If one where to see Dumbledore down on those cold dreary streets they would thing he was lost the way he seemed to choose the most random of roads and alleys to take. However, eventually Dumbledore came upon a small house with a dull wooden door. He banged loudly upon the door despite the late hour and when he didn't get a response he simply continued to bang on the door until it was thrown open by a rather tall and angry looking man.

The man was tall with shoulder length black hair and dark almost black eyes. His skin was pale and was made paler by the darkness of his eyes and hair. He was dressed in a set of black stripped pajamas and had obviously just been awoken from a rather deep sleep.

"Dumbledore? What the bloody hell are you doing?" the man whispered angrily. His dark eyes passed up and down the street making sure no one else had been awoken by the man's loud knocking.

"Severus, I have a favor to ask of you." Dumbledore began. Severus groaned and stepped aside so that Dumbledore could walk into the house. It was small and cramped and nearly every surface had a pile of books or a set of vials filled with potions of all different colors. Severus showed him into the living room and took a seat in the large dark armchair that sat near the fireplace.

"What do you want now Albus?" Severus asked not even trying to hide his anger at having been awoken so late at night. Dumbledore smiled faintly and took a seat on the sofa.

"I was hoping I could rely on you to care for a young child." He said as he leaned back into the sofa as if this was a perfectly normal favor to ask of anybody.

"A child? What child?" Severus asked slightly shocked. He wasn't exactly kid friendly and had been quite sure that he was on the bottom of everyone's list when it came to who they would trust a child with.

"Yes, a child, very special child. I think you'll like her. You two have rather similar personalities." He replied. Severus just narrowed is eyes at him. He was going to need more information about this girl before he let her into his house. Dumbledore just smiled.

"I'll bring her by tomorrow morning. Make sure you clean out a room so she has a place to sleep." Dumbledore said as he rose to his feet. Severus jumped up, anger once again seething from his eyes.

"Albus! You cannot bring a child here! I won't have it." Severus shouted at him as he tried to leave. Dumbledore turned and looked at Severus through his half-moon spectacles.

"She's homeless, Severus. An orphan and completely alone. She needs somewhere to call home." Dumbledore responded gently trying to get the more human side of Severus' heart to warm to the girl. Judging by the now softened look in his eyes, Dumbledore had achieved his goal.

"Be that as it may, if she is going to stay here I need to know at least something about her." Severus replied trying to hide that fact that he had already relented to letting her live at the house.

"Well then, I will tell you the most important thing you need to know." Dumbledore responded as he opened the front door. "She's a werewolf." And with that Dumbledore was gone back off to the Leaky Cauldron to collect Luka, leaving a shocked and anxious Severus Snape in the doorway of his home.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It was around 3 in the morning when Luka was awoken by the sound of footsteps outside her door. They were careful steps taken slowly so as to create as little noise as possible, but Luka, who had lived on her own for so long, had become very conscious of possible dangers. She listened to the steps that seemed to be pacing outside her door as if the person was debating whether or not they should enter.

After a few minutes of listening to the footsteps, Luka rose from the bed and strode lightly over to the large door. She twisted the handle and pulled it slightly open just enough so she could see out. There pacing in the hallway was Dumbledore deep in his own thoughts. She watched him for a while trying to figure out what would cause Dumbledore to be up at that hour pacing in the hallway. Deep in her own thoughts now she didn't notice Dumbledore looking at her.

"I'm sorry Miss Snow, did I wake you?" he asked gently. Luka jumped slightly at the sound and then shrunk back behind the door, slightly embarrassed that she had been discovered. Dumbledore laughed his usual laugh as he pushed the door open a little more and knelt down to her eye level.

"I was debating something, but maybe the best answer will be the one you give." He said his voice soft. Luke stared at him with her bright blue eyes. She couldn't help feeling a bit of pride at Dumbledore's words.

"I have found a place where you can live and be happy while you are at school. It's a small house, a little run down, but it's a roof over your head." He began. Luka listened closely, details were important to her, and although her father had died when she was young he had taught many things, one of those lessons was to always allow one to make their case before passing judgment. Dumbledore continued on knowing her silence was simply one of the lessons she had learned and was her way of carrying on her father's memory.

He told her all about the house and Spinner's End. He also told her about Snape. She seemed a little apprehensive at the idea of this man, but Dumbledore was able to convince her that she had to meet him. She nodded in agreement to go the next morning and meet Professor Snape and make her decision, and before Dumbledore had a chance to say goodnight she had shut the door and returned to bed.

She didn't like the idea of a new home or of someone who may try to take the place of her father, but she was going to give them a chance. She had to. It would be what her father would expect of her. With now swilling sad thoughts of her father in her head she cried herself into a deep sleep that would end to soon for her.

The morning came too quickly and cut short the dreams she was having of her father and their home in the country. Dumbledore gave her time though to gather herself and make her way down into the pub area where he was waiting for her.

"All set then Miss Snow?" he called as she strode towards the door where he stood talking to an elderly wizard with a slumped green hat. Luka smiled and waved in response to the man and then nodded to Dumbledore. They walked outside and Dumbledore took her hand and with a bang they were gone from that busy London street.

In a moment Luka found herself on a dirty street situated in an even dirtier neighborhood. Dumbledore led her down a few back alleys and up to a house with a dull wooden door that had seen a lot of weather and little care. Dumbledore knocked a couple of times and waited; Luka could hear rustling and banging on the other side as someone made their way to the door. There was a moment of silence before the door creaked open and revealed a tall man with pale skin and dark hair.

"Good morning Severus." Dumbledore said cheerily. The man replied with less cheer and more concern in his voice. His dark eyes moved from Dumbledore to Luka and then back. "May we come in?" Dumbledore asked politely. The man moved aside as a response and allowed them to enter. "Ah, I see you have been doing some cleaning." Dumbledore said as he walked past him and down the hallway. Luka thought she saw the man blush when she passed him as she followed Dumbledore.

She followed Dumbledore into what she assumed was a living room, although it could have easily been a library. The man walked in behind them and stood near the door way as Dumbledore took a seat on the faded blue sofa. Luka noticed that a lot of things in the house were much like the door, they had seen a lot of use and weather, but very little genuine care. She rather liked it though; it reminded her of her dad.

"So I should introduce you two." Dumbledore said once again breaking the silence that had fallen between them. "Well, this is Luka Snow." He said gesturing to Luka, who smiled and nodded her head to the man. "And this my dear, is Severus Snape." He nodded back. "Well now that that's covered. I'll leave you to it." He finished and before either of them could say anything there was a bang and Dumbledore was gone leaving the two of the to stare awkwardly at each other.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

It was silent in that small stuffy living room for a while. The man that Dumbledore had called Severus didn't seem to want to look at her let alone talk to her. Luka couldn't blame him she didn't want to talk to him either. Instead to looked around the room taking in the thick layers of dust on the mantle and tables, the dirty windows, and the mountains of books that covered almost every surface. This caught Luka's eye, if there was one thing she loved, it was books.

Without really thinking about it she went over and picked up one of the books. It was obviously old with a faded blue cover and swirling silver designs on the cover. The title written on the cover said, "Potions for the Advanced Potions Maker." Luka had no idea what potions were but the book seemed rather interesting.

"Please, be careful with that." Severus called out as he raised a cautioning hand, "That book is older than you are." His voice was filled with annoyance and had a note of condescension.

Luka turned her pale blue eyes on him and held his stare for a few minutes before returning to the book and opening the cover. She didn't appreciate the assumption that because she was young, that she was also destructive. She began flipping through the beginning pages of the book, not so much to read as much as to see how he would react, but he didn't and silence once again fell over the room.

Severus was trying to figure out how one commonly spoke to children. He had been a teacher at Hogwarts for years, but that was teaching, this was something totally different. The children there he would just yell at and give detention, and he definitely wasn't responsible for them in any way. Also, few of those kids were orphans, and none of them were werewolves.

"Do you know how to read?" he asked as he watched her flip through the pages of the book. The girl's head lifted fast as she fixed him with a set of deadly yellow eyes. He could have sworn her eyes were blue.

She closed the book with a snap and placed it gently back on the pile. She could feel the anger burning in her stomach and she knew that she was starting to change. Severus took a step back out of the doorway as her hair began to turn white. He could hear her steady growl as she took slow steps towards him and he wasn't sure if he should run or attack her. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend." He said raising both hands as an act of surrender showing himself unarmed. Luka froze. Her eyes shot back to blue and her hair went back to its dark almost black color.

"You're sorry?" she asked with a look of skepticism in her eyes. People were often rude to her and treated her terrible, but none of them had ever apologized. Severus nodded. "Why?" she asked now more curious then skeptical.

Severus lowered his hands slowly as he looked at her. "Well I obviously offended you. It was not my intention." He replied. Luka just stared at him. "Uh, let's try this again. My name is Professor Severus Snape." He said as he held out his hand.

A small smile twitched at the corners of her mouth. "It's a pleasure to meet you sir. My name is Luka Snow." she replied as she shook his hand.

"Do you like books?" Severus asked trying to prevent the silence from falling again. Luka nodded with a small smile. "Well, as long as you promise to be careful, you can read any of the books here." He said as he gestured about the room to the mountains of books. He was trying to be kind although he had no idea if it was working. Luka was like a blank page and she didn't seem too interested in talking either.

It had been 4 hours since Dumbledore had left the two unattended in the house. He was confident that the two of them would figure it out and that he would return to find them chatting away over a cup of tea or something. However, that was not at all what he found when he reentered the house. The door was unlocked and the house was empty.

Dumbledore called out for both of them and even searched the houses, but it was in vain. There was no one in the house and that small bit of information worried Dumbledore. Luka was prone to intense rage that usually led to someone getting hurt, and Severus wasn't exactly the kindest of people either. Dumbledore left the house and began looking around Spinner's End, but to no avail. The two seemed to have completely disappeared, but in the world of magic that was never true. People could disappear for a time, but they always had to reappear eventually. He decided to wait in Severus's home until the two reappeared again.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Off in the distance the sun was beginning to set and the shadows were growing longer of the people who stood out on their front steps watching the strangest sight they had ever seen. Down their street walked the mysterious tall man that few of them had ever seen and at his side a young girl. They were all confident in their assumption that she was not his and had to be some runaway, but still they had to admit that the two looked rather nice together.

However, neither of them noticed the stares of the people around them as each was lost in their own thoughts. Severus had taken Luka down to the local library which was actually run by a small ancient witch who let them down into the basement where she kept all the magical books. Luka hadn't seen that many books in one spot since her father had died, and she couldn't have been happier. She had darted from shelf to shelf reading the spines of the elegant books that stood stiff and straight.

The old witch had laughed softly as she stood beside Severus, "What a lovely daughter you have; such a thirst for knowledge." Severus had been about to correct her when Luka ran back over to them. "This place is wonderful! Can I borrow a book?" she asked barely able to hide her excitement. The old witch nodded and Luka took off once again to dart among the shelves. She had eventually returned with a large blue book with green scrolled letters across the cover that said, "The Magic of Magical Creatures."

As Luka walked beside the tall man clutching the book close to her chest it started to occur to her that maybe she could be happy here. Severus was less certain of her happiness. It had been hours and all he had learned of the child was that she liked to read and had anger issues. He was lost in his thoughts on how he was going to tell Dumbledore that he would have to find her another home.

"Well hello you two. I was wondering where you had gone off too." The voice snapped them both out of their thoughts. There in the doorway stood Dumbledore a wide smile on his face as he looked at them. Luka smiled back up at him and walked passed him into the house where she quickly settled into the couch to read her new book. Meanwhile, Severus simply stood on the sidewalk looking at Dumbledore.

"Well what do you think of her? Rather charming isn't she?" Dumbledore asked rubbing his hands together eagerly. He was smiling broadly happy in his thoughts that the two had hit it off and not noticing the way Severus's eyes shifted to his feet.

"Dumbledore, have you thought this through?" Severus asked cautiously. Dumbledore finally turned his attention to the man and smiled. "Severus, my friend, I have thought this through many times. You have to just give it some time." Dumbledore replied gently placing a hand on the man's shoulder. Severus simply shook his head in dismay. "Give it the summer and we will reevaluate after the school year." Severus nodded reluctantly and then Dumbledore was gone.

Over the next three months the two had bonded quite nicely. Their mutual desire for quiet and time to themselves had served to lessen tension. Luka was desperate for Severus's approval and so during one of his outings she had cleaned and reorganized the house from top to bottom; Severus had been so in shock that he had just sat in the living room for three days. Luka had been worried that she had overstepped her bounds and apologized, only to find that he was actually happy.

Severus hadn't had time to clean in years and in truth it wasn't a skill he possessed either. However, Luka loved cleanliness and organization and would walk behind him cleaning up the trail of empty vials and torn pieces of parchment he often left about. There was only one room that Luka wasn't allowed to clean and that was his potions room. It was there that Severus spent most of his time, always working on something that Luka assumed was very important.

All too soon Luka was packing her trunk with her school books and other assorted items. At the very top of the trunk she placed her mother's wand which she had wrapped safely in a scarf.

"Luka! Are you all packed?" Severus called up the stairs

"Yes sir!" she replied

"Come down then. I have something for you."

Luka could find it in herself to suppress the growing smile. She had found Severus to be a rather kind man despite his cold exterior and treatment of certain people. She had to admit that she had grown rather fond of him and his company. She quickly shut the lid of the trunk and ran down the stairs to the kitchen where she found a wooden box sitting on the table and Severus standing nearby a smile playing at the edges of his mouth.

The box was a dark reddish color with a silver latch and lock. Luka ran her fingers over its smooth surface, "What is it?" she asked excitedly. Severus stepped forward and placed a hand on the box. "Have a seat, please." he said a note of gravity in his voice. Luka looked up at him with her wide blue eyes and slowly sank into one of the wooden chairs. Severus said in the chair opposite her and took a deep breath as though collecting his thoughts for the next conversation.

"I made something to help you at school." He began cautiously

"Help me with what?" she asked

"Come now Luka. I think that goes without saying," he laughed

Luka looked at him for moment in confusion, but the confusion was brief and her face fell and her eyes shifted to the floor.

"I have never hurt anyone. Ever." She whispered a note of anger in her voice.

A look of compassion passed over Severus's face as he looked at the little girl.

"I know that, but I also know that it is better to be certain." Luka shifted uneasily in the chair as he spoke. "I made these for you." As he finished he opened the box to reveal about 40 small vials all filled with a copper colored liquid. Luka looked at them through her dark hair, and she had to admit that they were rather pretty.

"What will they do?" she asked her words dripping with a bitter sadness that pierced Severus much deep then he had expected it would.

"You will drink one every day and it will keep you from changing outside of your will. Even if you get angry." He said taking one of the bottles out and handing it to her. "I doubt they taste that good." Luka took the vial and looked at it for a minute before taking the stopper out and drinking it. He was right, it tasted horrible.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

King's Cross Station was packed when Severus dropped her off near the entrance. He had decided to walk her to the station that way he could explain why he couldn't walk her to the train and also that she should probably keep it to herself that she lived with him. Luka didn't quite understand. She couldn't quite grasp the idea of this man being anything but kind, but she didn't argue. However, once he was gone she just kept wishing he would reappear and help her get to the station between platforms 9 and 10.

She knew he wouldn't though and so she ran a hand through her dark hair and straightened her sweater (it was a solid blue sweater that Severus had gotten her, but she loved it.). She took a deep breath and plunged through the doors to the station and found it to be utter chaos on the other side. There were people running in all directions and others were shouting for family members as they either boarded or unloaded the many trains.

Luka did her best to push through the crowds and make it over to where she needed to be, but it took her close to a half an hour before she finally reached the solid brick wall. Now Severus had explained that she needed to run into it and at the time it sounded rather easy, but now looking at it she couldn't help but think he was crazy. She stood and stared at it for a while trying to work up the courage to run into it, but a sudden pressure on her shoulder shocked her out of her thoughts.

She whipped around ready to attack who ever had grabbed her, but her guard dropped completely when she saw who it was. "Severus!" she shouted a wide smiling spreading over her face. The man smiled down at her.

"I realized that running into a brick wall is kind of hard to talk yourself into the first time." He said gently his hand still on her shoulder. Luka's cheeks turned slightly pink as her eyes shifted to the floor. Severus noticed her subtle embarrassment and knelt down in front of her so that he was able to look into her eyes. "Luka, you can do this." He whispered gently, Luka couldn't help notice that that was often the way her dad would encourage her.

She looked up slightly so that her blue eyes met with his almost solid black ones. As she looked into his eyes she felt a subtle confidence filling her heart. "Ok." She whispered and with a deep breathe she grabbed the handles of her trolley once more and ran into the solid wall. The wall seemed to give way before her and when she opened her eyes again she found herself on a completely different platform.

If it was possible it was in more chaos then the muggle station on the other side, but she set her jaw and forced her way towards the train. It was bright red with black and gold designs on it, but Luka had never even seen a train before let alone rode in one and so she stood there for a while trying to figure out what to do with her stuff. Luckily though, an older gentleman in a red uniform that was designed much like the train approached her and told her that he would see to the bags. Luka smiled and thanked the man, remembering Severus's insistence that she be her kind self. It was hard to be that vulnerable, especially to a stranger, but she was learning.

Luka watched the man take her trolley down to another end of the train before getting on. There were a lot of compartments inside and they all seemed to be filled with lots of students who already knew each other, but Luka's introverted personality wouldn't allow her to just walk in on a random group of friends. So she kept walking until she came upon an empty compartment near the end of the train.

It was quiet back there as few students had walked that far and Luka was fully expecting to have a quiet and uneventful ride to the school. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a few of the coins Dumbledore had told her were the money used in the magical world. Severus had insisted she take it, just in case she got hungry. She smiled at the coins and then placed them safely back into her pocket and stared out the window at all the families below who were waving to their kids. It was peaceful and quiet.

Suddenly the door to her compartment slammed open startling her from her position at the window. She looked over quickly to see three boys standing there; two of them looked exactly alike the other simply looked like he was along for the ride.

"Oh, hi there. Mind if we join you?" one boy said, he had bright red hair and deep green eyes. Without waiting for an answer he strode into the compartment and said himself across from her and the others followed suit. "My name is Fred, this is my brother George and that's Lee." He said gesturing to the boy beside her on the last name. Luka just stared at him, he was much too cheerful and energetic in her opinion, but she introduced herself anyway.


End file.
